Retired
since 2008 from the Program
in Linguistics of the Department
of
Linguistics and Germanic, Slavic, Asian, and African Languages at Michigan State University, I continue research and writing on
Ethiopian and Afroasiatic linguistics.
Until I began to focus on Ethiopian linguistics, my interest in
theoretical linguistics was to discourage
the unreasonable and unnecessary diachronic metaphor in synchronic
phonology: speech derived from theoretical underlying' forms via
ordered rules or ranked
constraints. Theoretical phonology is yet unwilling to give up these
complicating fantasies. (Maybe it has largely given them up,
in practice, but without rejecting them.)

An
early interest in the descriptive linguistics of the Highland East
Cushitic group gave way to historical linguistics of northeast
Africa, especially northeast African Semitic (15 languages mostly in
Ethiopia),
and
particularly their archaic traits
usually attributed to Cushitic 'substratum' influence presumed, in the
absence of evidence, as part of the theory of northeast African Semitic
origin
in early third millenium BP migrations from South Arabia. A
later interest arising from work on Northeast
African Semitic reconstruction
is language evolution in prehistory, with the rapid growth of
symbolic lexicon and propositional and
structure-dependent language in association with the
cultural
explosion
of the species (and perhaps the out-of-Africa human migrations) from
about 50,000 BP.

"Upon this first...rule of
reason, that in order to learn you must desire to learn, and in so
desiring not be satisfied with what you already incline to
believe, there follows one corollary which itself deserves to be
inscribed upon every wall of the city of philosophy: Do not block the
way of inquiry."
Charles Sanders Peirce, 1896

"There are two passions which have a powerful influence in the affairs
of men.
These are ambition and avarice; the love of power and the
love of money. Separately, each of these has great force in prompting
men to action;
but, when united in view of the same object, they have in many minds
the most violent effects...
And of what kind are the men that will strive for this profitable
preeminence, through all the bustle of cabal, the heat of contention,
the infinite mutual abuse of parties, tearing
to pieces the best of characters?
It will not be the wise and moderate, the lovers of peace and good
order, the men fittest for the trust. It will be the bold and the
violent, the men of strong passions and indefatigable activity in their
selfish pursuits."
Benjamin Franklin, 1787

The intellect of man is forced to choose
perfection of the life, or of the work,
And if it take the second must refuse
A heavenly mansion, raging in the dark.
When all that story's finished, what's the news?
In luck or out the toil has left its mark:
That old perplexity an empty purse,
Or the day's vanity, the night's remorse.
W. B. Yeats, 'The Choice'